Unfortunately our babysitter was out of town so we asked if we could bring our toddler with us. They said that was no problem. I spent the day prepping my daughter for our "special night out". We painted her toe nails, did her hair and picked out her favorite tutu. I told her probably 85 times "we're going somewhere special, you have to be really nice"! I know that kids are usually not welcome in more upscale eateries so I didn't want to blow it.
We arived right in time for our reservation at 6:30. I was surprised at how few people were there when we arived. It was a Tuesday but we were there at what I thought would be dinner time. Anyhow, it was nice that the place wasn't bursting at it's seams. It felt relaxed yet quiet. The atmosphere was perfect.
Charcoal serves food mainly based on what is in season. They have a garden on the roof and they apparently strive to buy Colorado grown products so you know what you are eating is fresh. Due to the freshness of their food, their menu changes. Well, for Restaurant week they have a special menu just for the week. It looks like the menu items are also available right now on their Summer menu so hurry in to try it out while it's available!
Since I'm pregnant I have a list of foods I need to avoid which limited my options down a lot. I would have loved to try the Brussels sprout appetizer for example but instead I had to stick with the shrimp, oh darn! Gary ordered the shrimp too. He's a Brussels sprout lover so I was a little surprised by his choice. Then again, who can turn down shrimp? Apparently not us! It's a good thing too. This grilled shrimp is served with romesco, smoked paprika and micro cilantro. The shrimp was seasoned to perfection. It was amazing. I think it was the best shrimp I've ever had. The romesco was really delicious too. I liked it so much I was dipping the bread they start you with in it savoring the flavors once my shrimp was gone.
Next we received our main dish, the Colorado "Never Ever" Sirloin. Again, we both ordered the same thing. Gary is a steak lover so that was no surprise and as for me, I was stuck with the option. The Sirloin was served with "bourguignonne" beluga lentils, bacon, pearl onion, red wine sauce". The flavors were bold and hearty. I really liked the lentils but my toddler ate them before I could. I guess she loved them too! The Sirloin was perfectly cooked and lightly seasoned. It was spot on and tasty.
We finished our evening with dessert. I had the Crème brûlée which was surprisingly large. We ended up all sharing it. I am a huge fan of Crème brûlée and have had it many times yet I can honestly say this was the best Crème brûlée I've ever had! It was so creamy and offered just enough sweetness to appeal to my sweet tooth. We all loved it!
Our experience at Charcoal was outstanding. Meeting the chef was our pleasure. We were impressed with his food and even more so with the freshness and quality of the ingredients served to us. I would be proudly recommend Charcoal to anyone looking for a casual yet quality meal. We just might even have to make a return visit in the future!